1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a driving device, more particularly to a driving device that is configured to drive a relay.
2. Description of the Related Art
In a conventional power converter structure (e.g., a power supply), an inrush current that occurs at the time when the power converter is activated has an undesirably large magnitude and thus is a common problem that needs to be addressed. Typically, a relay is used to suppress such inrush current. Specifically, when the power converter is activated, the relay is configured to direct the inrush current to a current suppresser such as a resistor, a thermistor or the like that is able to handle instantaneous large current. Therefore, the effect of the inrush current can be nullified. The relay is further configured to short-circuit the current suppressor after the inrush current has dissipated, allowing the power converter to operate normally for providing power.
However, the relay itself is an electrical component that consumes power during operation. Specifically, the relay needs a power to enter an activated state, and to stay in the activated state. It can be seen that when the relay is connected to the power converter, the power conversion efficiency of the power converter with the relay is reduced as compared with a power converter without the relay.
Some solutions have been proposed to alleviate reduction of the power conversion efficiency of the power converter resulting from inclusion of the relay. For example, the electrical components of the power converter and/or the relay can be replaced with ones configured for better performance. The circuitry arrangement of the power converter and/or the relay can be redesigned to achieve the similar effect. Nonetheless, the better performing electrical components can be somewhat costly, and redesign of circuitry arrangement is time-consuming.